April 15th, 2026

Welcome to this edition of the BTDarters Newsletter! As always, we hope you are having a great week!

Please note that the season for ordering our southern U.S. fishes is still OPEN! But only for another few weeks! Contact Us for details!

Twenty-fifth Anniversary Celebration Continues!

Again, we’re celebrating 25 years of business here at BTDarters! In the next month or so, we hope to have additional merch options available. We haven’t released them yet, because we like to “test” our merch for quality, appearance and durability before we release it. As we have not had the chance to test the new merch yet, we’re not releasing it yet. Thanks for your understanding!

As always, we're glad you've joined us! And we hope you enjoy this email newsletter! Thanks!

As a point of note, please do not reply directly to this email newsletter. It has come to our attention that some people have been doing that, and we have not been getting the emails. If you need to contact us, please use the email addresses bt@btdarters.com or info@btdarters.com.

Wayback, but Not as Far!

Today, we’re going back to 2005. At that time, we had updated our home page to be more artistic, and convey more information. If you click on the link below to our “index” page, you will see an image similar to the one above. If, however, you click the link on your phone, or another device with a horizontal resolution lower than 1,024 pixels, you will see a slightly different image. The reasoning for that was to accommodate different browser and monitor resolutions. Which were a big concern way back in 2005.

You will also notice, if you click on the pricelist page, that almost all of our prices today are still lower than they were back then. The reasoning for that was that we didn’t have the wealth of collecting sites we have today. And our methods of collecting the native fishes was not as refined. Today, with more experience, and more collecting sites, we’re able to offer you fishes at cheaper prices.

Have a look at the links below for a trip back in time! 

Representing NANFA at the Upcoming AGA Convention!

BTDarters has been invited to help represent the North American Native Fishes Association (NANFA) at the Aquatic Gardeners Association (AGA) convention in Sacramento, California next week. For those of you that don’t know, NANFA is a group of hobbyists, conservationists and natural-resource workers that share an interest in the conservation of ALL of the native fishes of North America.

The Aquatic Gardeners Association is a group of hobbyists, conservationists and professionals with an interest in keeping aquatic plants in aquaria. Because fish keeping and aquatic plant keeping often overlap, we were invited to attend.

Regarding our table at the event, we do plan to have some fishes available for sale. We have partnered with another NANFA member to have even more fishes available. Please note that, we will NOT be bringing fishes that our customers are waiting for from us. With the exception that we plan to have some Fantail Darters for sale. We do have one customer who is waiting on those, and we do have theirs in-stock. We are holding them until we can complete their order. 

Regarding other fishes for sale, unless our partner is bringing fishes that you are waiting for from us, we will NOT be selling fishes that our customers are waiting for from us. YOU take priority and we will not sell fishes around your back that you are waiting for. That is our commitment to you!

The convention will be a really great time and very informative! If you can make it to the convention to say, “hi,” we’d love to meet you!

To learn more about NANFA, the AGA, or the AGA convention, please visit the websites, linked below.

Out of the Office from 4/21 to 4/28

Because we will be out of the office, to attend the AGA convention, we will have limited access to emails and are not planning to ship fishes the weeks of 4/19 and 4/26. Our southern supplier may be getting out to collect fishes during that time. If he is able to, and if we are able to coordinate shipment from him to your location, we will contact you to arrange shipment. Thank you for your understanding!

Aquarium Consultation and Setup

In case you didn’t know, BTDarters does aquarium consultation and setup!  Types of aquariums we can set up and consult on include, but are not limited to:

• Biotope Aquaria
• Aquaponic Setups
• “Aquariponic” Setups
• Species-specific Setups
• Planted Aquaria
• Display Aquaria
• Themed Aquaria
• Spawning Consultation
• Fry-rearing Consultation

If you’re local to the Milwaukee, Wisconsin area, we can even help you source the tank, fish, plants, and any other equipment related to creating the best, most complete, best-for-your-fishes setup you can imagine!

Please see the images above and below as an example of a 20-gallon aquarium we recently set up with native and tropical plants, native fishes, driftwood, river rocks and “aquariponic” filtration.

Also, please have a look at our “consulting” page, and our aquarium portfolio, both linked below, for more information. And please Contact Us if you have any questions, or to book services. Thanks!

Thanks for 25 Great Years!

Well, northern collecting season is open and southern collecting season will soon come to a close. If you’re waiting on fishes, please note that we’re doing our best to get you your fishes as soon as possible. 

Again, we are looking for help with administrative and other duties. Please Contact Us if you might have an interest in that.

Thanks!

Brian

Brian J. Torreano - Founder and Owner of BTDarters

In Case You Didn't Hear, We Were On the Air!!

This is a repeat announcement. We've got a bunch of new subscribers this week and have left this in for their information.

We were recently the featured guests on the Pet Life Radio podcast! The episode, "Going Native with Brian Torreano of BTDarters," is live! Hop on over to the podcast webpage (button below) or the episode on iHeartRadio (button further below) to listen. We hope you enjoy!

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Have you checked out "The Alphabet Zoo" by Cymande Cannon, with illustrations by Brian J. Torreano? This vibrant picture book with its striking illustrations and unique alliteration reinforces learning and will make you and your child smile!

For more information, or to purchase a copy for you or your loved ones, please click the button below! Thanks!

Unless otherwise stated, all content is Copyright Brian J. Torreano/BTDarters 2026. Content not owned by BTDarters is used with permission.

Milwaukee, Wisconsin

414-374-2824